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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22684849">You, Unspoken Beauty</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TomorrowTakesForever/pseuds/TomorrowTakesForever'>TomorrowTakesForever</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>NU'EST</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Aaron the emotional wreck, Alternate Universe - Office, Bickering, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Everyone Is Gay, M/M, Minhyun sucks at showing emotions, NU'Company, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn, Some Humor, Unresolved Tension, Writer!Aaron</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 09:26:43</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>9,776</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22684849</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/TomorrowTakesForever/pseuds/TomorrowTakesForever</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Working on a major magazine company for nearly five years means a variety of positive opportunities for Kwak Aaron. </p><p>But working with Hwang Minhyun on the same major magazine company means quite the opposite.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hwang Minhyun/Aaron Kwak | Aron</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>45</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Fulfillment</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>First time in my life that the tag "angst" is not incorporated in one of my stories. I call for a celebration and hope you enjoy what is to come, because we have a long road ahead.</p><p>Long live the Minronists. I have faith I will someday wake up to hundreds of fics in this tag.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Always good to know that I can count on you for being a complete and utter <em> git</em>.”  </p><p>As if his reprimanding voice wasn't loud enough and attracting attention from the people around them already, Minki lowered his sunglasses to the bridge of his nose to pierce his glare through him; a frown of impatience even though he'd distinctly busied himself in Aaron’s absence pretty well. He carried multiple shopping bags tightly in his hands and a few even dangling around his forearms from the lack of space. Aaron didn't even feign sympathy when he reached his side and sighed directly on his face, offering a hand in silence to help him. </p><p>“Yeah, pretend to be a gentleman and help me with my bags after leaving me stranded for nearly forty minutes, why don't you?” The lack of real malice was nearly comical, because Choi Minki had grown a very soft spot for Kwak Aaron as much as he tried to deny it, but he wasn't finished glaring just yet. </p><p>If Aaron didn't know his theatricals any better, he'd mutter an apology for filler, at least. But he elbowed him lightly and began to walk beside him without an excuse and rather a peace offering in his gaze. “I think the words you're looking for are: ‘<em>t</em><em>hank you for agreeing to help me despite being busy,</em> <em>Aaron’.</em>”</p><p>Minki opened his mouth ready to oppose, but when the hidden gratitude hit, he narrowed his eyes in acceptance. “Fair enough.” </p><p>There was just something about Aaron’s life that had pretty much always been fulfilling, to say the least. Even when he sometimes worked ten hours a day, barely went out with his friends unless it was the end of the month, and constantly found himself in between awkward situations he didn't know how to fix, he was genuinely positive. </p><p>He graduated University with a valuable portfolio (and honors), a fifty percent scholarship, and a list of major editorial companies that offered him a job right after he stepped off the podium with a graduation certificate and a firm handshake from the Mass Communication’s dean. Even with the initial rejection he'd faced from his parents years prior when he confessed that he wanted to pursue fashion design and not medicine, he'd settled down on “<em> a job that can put food on the table </em> ,” as his parents described it, and picked journalism instead. It worked out pretty well for him in the end— <em> kind of— </em>since he was the print journalist at a top fashion and trend-setter magazine company in Seoul. </p><p>He wasn't out there dressing people or creating pieces of fashion like he'd dreamed about when he was a teenager, but at least he could see the entertainment and fashion industry from the outside and better than anyone else. He could use his talent with words and describe it, discourse about it, <em> write </em> about it… </p><p>Aaron might have stayed unknown behind a keyboard and behind a computer screen and behind monthly pages of his work, but he would never change his life if he were given the opportunity to choose a different career or firm again. He was adamant. No one ever read the first pages of magazines where all the editorial team’s names were written, but Aaron was always happy to check it out and find his name with that foolish glint in his eyes. It was almost as if Dongho put the font of his name a tiny bit bigger just to overjoy him every time they opened a freshly printed monthly edition; he'd elbow him with a laugh and Dongho would deny such accusations. (“<em>There's font regulations, Aaron. Your name is the same size as everyone else's,</em>” he'd say, but trained eyes would very likely refute his claim.) </p><p>As Minki rambled about the new summer hat he bought earlier for a very <em> reasonable </em> price (even during December’s winter), Aaron nodded to himself in confirmation that he wouldn't change his life—all of <em> this— </em>for sure. He definitely wouldn't change the coffee machine they had on the third floor of the company, and even if he was a loyal writer to the company until the day he died, he would never falter nor hesitate when it came to changing his mind. </p><p>He wouldn't change the gratifying smile of alleviation on Dongho’s face after he was done tweaking the new magazine cover and creating original layouts for the magazine from scratch. Minki would very cheerfully clink their glasses after “<em>another successful month,” </em> and Aaron would go to bed feeling accomplished and <em> fulfilled </em>. </p><p>Because he was. </p><p>Wasn't he?</p><p>“I swear we should have fled that damned company the moment that asshole added an extra hour of work,” Minki said and Aaron turned his attention back to him after filtering all the conversation from minutes ago, “<em> And </em> , what kinda boss gives his employees <em> six </em> days total of holidays? You even worked on <em> Christmas Eve </em>.” </p><p>Aaron agreed to an extent. He wasn't one to openly lament, and especially not to Minki when he very easily misinterpreted his words, but he couldn't help himself from shrugging hopelessly. “At this point I don't care just as long as I get promoted tomorrow.” </p><p>Minki crunched his nose. “You've been the editor for the last three months anyways. I think he's obviously giving you the spot permanently.” </p><p>The tone in his voice comforted him, but Aaron remained silent. He didn't want to be too hopeful in case of disappointment. And if things didn't go the way he wanted them to go tomorrow on the annual company dinner, he promised he would refrain from complaining and he'd simply… work harder.</p><p> It didn't sit too well with him to constantly complain about his job when everything in his life was pretty decent. He'd not dwell about the company issues bordering the edges of his brain; not even with Dongho, whom he'd known for more than five years and earned the <em> confidential </em>status on his short list of close friends. </p><p>His friends weren't stupid though, and with the frequency in which Aaron mentioned it, he <em> clearly </em> wanted to be promoted to the magazine’s fulltime editor. Gaeun, <em> Lovercome’s </em> editor for eight <em> years </em> , quit working because of maternity leave, so a <em> temporary </em> editor was needed from one day to the other. </p><p>Their company’s boss, Hwang Jinhwan had approached Aaron one afternoon and with a rich-man’s finesse specified that he was counting on him for what was left of the year; he'd been working there for almost five years, and truthfully, he had a way with his words. Aaron had also worked closely with Gaeun in the past when they had to discuss articles and printing, so there was really no one in the entire team—let alone <em> company</em>—who knew how to manage the monthly editing routine as smoothly as Aaron.</p><p>But he still felt a little shaky. Aaron hadn't expected himself to become so greedy and crave to change the <em>temporary </em>to a <em>permanent </em>editor status. And as if he weren't anxious already, Aaron couldn't hide his speculations to grow onto Dongho and Minki after Jinhwan said that there was an <em>important announcement t</em>o be made on the company’s Christmas dinner. </p><p>“So, who'd you get anyways?”</p><p>Aaron blinked and audaciously frowned in confusion. He seriously had to stop thinking about other things whenever Minki was rambling to him. “Oh? What were you talking about?”</p><p>Minki spared himself the eye-roll. “Secret Santa?”</p><p>Oh, yeah. Secret Santa. </p><p>Aaron wouldn't trade their annual Secret Santa either. Nor the glaring Minki when he took long enough to think about his response. </p><p>“Uh. Someone from the printing team.” He lied through his teeth. </p><p>“And who's that? Do I know them?”</p><p>“<em> Secret Santa, </em>Minki. The whole point is for it to be a secret.”</p><p>“Come on, you know I got Dongho.” </p><p>Aaron wasn't a quick-thinker. His reflexes had never been good in general, and his improvisation skills were terrible even when he willingly enrolled on the drama club back in high school. Within the lack of response, Minki laughed and covered his mouth immediately after. “Oh God. You got me, didn't you?”</p><p>“No.”</p><p>“Luckily it's you,” Minki shrugged, “At least you know the kinda things I like.”</p><p>“Anyways,” Aaron cleared his throat. The main reason he was with Minki right now was to help him out with Dongho’s Secret Santa gift. He didn't really understand why he needed Aaron’s help, but Minki outwardly begged and he felt guilty and couldn't say no. “Can we choose Dongho’s gift already?”</p><p>They walked around at a steady pace and Aaron unwillingly stopped in his tracks every time Minki slowed down in front of jewelry shops. He pointed at a golden bracelet asking for his opinion and Aaron raised both of his eyebrows. “I'm not the one trying to court him, why do I have to choose?”</p><p>“You've known him longer.”</p><p>“Yeah, but it's your gift.” </p><p>His eyes kept skimming through the windows when he clasped his hands. “Wait, look at that. Now I want to buy him a watch. He'd look hot."</p><p>“I'll remind you we're on a budget—”</p><p>“Men who wear watches are sexy.”</p><p>Aaron shut his mouth. Minki had a pretty good point. </p><p>Minki suddenly gasped in realization of… <em> something </em> and Aaron was sure that he was shopping with a mad person. “Should I get him a new <em> phone? </em>Oh my God, I'm getting him a phone!”</p><p>He finally retorted. “The budget’s <em> forty </em> dollars and not four<em> hundred, </em>Minki. Can you calm down?” </p><p>“He's been using that wicked iPhone five ever since I met him. Don't tell me you've never considered giving him a new one?” Minki exaggerated with massive hand gestures and sighed. “He's got that power bank plugged in at like... eleven in the morning!”  </p><p>Aaron knew it was no use to convince (attempt) with words, so he dragged Minki towards the nearest clothing shop and disguised his impatience instead. “I'm here to help, right? Get him a shirt and he'll be happy.” </p><p>Minki stopped mid-thought and eventually brought himself inside, obscene clothing-rack shifting and disapproving gazes at a couple shirts. </p><p>“These kinda shirts are exactly why Polo doesn't make it in our magazine.” Minki half-whispered to Aaron, hiding his embarrassment when an employee openly stared at them when she overheard him. </p><p>Aaron stopped minding a long time ago. Going out shopping with Minki meant mortifying themselves one way or the other, so he bowed in apology for him and took a black shirt from a shelf himself and dropped it on their empty basket. “Just trust me and thank me tomorrow.” </p><p>Minki looked unsure but he suspired in the end, dilemma barely leaving his face when he told the woman at the counter to use the bright green wrapping paper. </p><p>It wasn't until they reached the parking lot that Minki took a deep breath once all his bags were settled in the backseat of his car and smiled authentically after a long time. “You think we can get shit-faced at tomorrow’s dinner?” </p><p>Aaron scoffed in return. “I'm pretty sure your untainted <em> etiquette </em> would disagree with that.” </p><p>He dangled the car keys around his index finger and pushed his forgotten sunglasses back in place. “I've attended these things for three years now. You, <em> five. </em>There's no way out, so might as well just fuck it.”</p><p>He patted Minki on the back and his smile was oddly genuine when he bit back the bitter laugh. “I'll see you tomorrow, Minki.” </p><p>“Yeah, yeah.” Minki said, and he sounded reprimanded. “But the offer’s still up. If you don't wanna get drunk with our boss watching, let's hit the bar after.” </p><p>Aaron ignored whatever he was saying, and just walked off with a wave and a silent goodbye. He wasn't about to have a conversation in the middle of the lot regarding drinks with him right now. Minki wasn't exactly good at handling them when he had a couple too much and Aaron rathered concentrating on the possible promotion he'd get tomorrow. </p><p>He beamed to himself. Hope was a dangerous thing. </p><p> </p><p>—</p><p> </p><p>Dongho looked uncomfortable the moment he sat next to Aaron in black pants that very well made him look <em> expensive </em>. He carried a small bag (for Secret Santa, he figured) with a ribbon on the side and eyed Aaron tiredly. They'd attended these parties long enough to know the drill and schedule and order of happenings. And it didn't surprise either of them when the place started getting packed with people they'd only ever seen at these events, barely sparing them any greetings and sitting at the tables in the center of the room. Under the chandelier. </p><p>Aaron and Dongho were the only ones at their table for the moment because they'd arrived early. These conglomerate parties weren't as enjoyable to the employees as much as they were for the rich people who had stocks or belonged to the board of directors of the company; they all had an air of superiority that made Aaron shift uncomfortably and briefly wonder what he was doing here to begin with, but Dongho brushed it off as he ordered them whiskey. Aaron opened his mouth to object. “All of this is coming out of the Director’s pocket. Order the most expensive shit, dude.” </p><p>As if he'd overheard their conversation, Hwang Jinhwan approached their table with a glass of wine around his fingers and a friendly smile on his face. Dongho nearly hit his knee when they stood up to bow, and Aaron smiled back just the same. </p><p>“Kwak Aaron, I have to talk to you about something.” Aaron opened his mouth to reply properly, but he was being cut abruptly. “I'll come to you after dinner’s served, if that's okay?” </p><p>He nodded with the words stuck in his throat and watched him leave in silence before turning to look at Dongho. “Why doesn't that sound promising?”</p><p>More people from their team started arriving in extravagant suits and dresses, but Aaron continued to sulk in silence. He saw Eunha’s golden band on her ring finger and he couldn't help but look at his own hands, empty and no compromises. It almost seemed like today couldn't get any better.</p><p>Minki sat to his left and Aaron took a deep breath after he finished his third glass of whiskey. “Everyone’s getting pregnant, married, or promoted.”</p><p>Dongho looked at him in silence, but Minki put a hand on his shoulder. </p><p>“And it's even more unfair, ‘cuz I can't do any of those. Impossible to get pregnant, can't marry because it's not legal to marry men here yet, and I can't even get promoted—”</p><p>“—Hot guy alert. Hot guy at four o’clock.” </p><p>Aaron effectively craned his neck to see it himself. He narrowed his eyes slightly because he could barely see anyone’s face when the place was so full of people and dark. </p><p>When Aaron caught a proper glance, he internally shrugged. His eyes traced his entire figure and Minki elbowed him hard to avoid further embarrassment. Aaron choked with his own thoughts. “Uh. New intern, I guess?” He said breathless from the previous attack. </p><p>“I don't think he's an intern.” Dongho sounded. “These are pretty big end of the year parties. They've never invited interns.” </p><p>Minki shifted his eyes away from Aaron to look at Dongho. “He's a new face, though. I'd remember him for sure.”</p><p>Seungkwan, the one who'd brought him into their attention earlier, leaned and whispered. “He might be someone from the President’s family. Dawon saw him sitting at Jinhwan’s table earlier.” </p><p>And just as promised, as soon as everyone on his table finished eating, Aaron felt a tap on the shoulder and he immediately got up to greet their boss-slash-President for the second time that night. He felt a little tipsy when he followed him outside of the main hall, and he hoped he didn't look visibly anxious when they reached the door that led to a garden. Aaron watched the sky and was brought back to reality when the older man cleared his throat.</p><p>“You remember my son, right? Hwang Minhyun?”</p><p>Aaron turned to look at him and he nodded in confirmation. “You’ve mentioned him before.” </p><p>In fact, he'd heard a <em> lot </em> about him. Minhyun was studying in America, and when Jinhwan found out that Aaron had lived in Los Angeles for most of his life, he'd always found a reason to mention him and comment about how worried he was sometimes. Aaron hadn't actually ever seen him or met him before, but he assumed that he might have been in his early twenties, being a university student after all. </p><p>“You've never met him, but he graduated this year, and he's here tonight. He’ll be working in the editorial team.”</p><p>Aaron nodded in surprise, finding it quite sudden. He could bet that Minhyun wasn't studying anything regarding writing or he'd remember. </p><p>“I need you to train him.” Jinhwan said, and Aaron shifted all of his attention to his words. So was he really getting <em> promoted </em>? He almost started to shake with anticipation but remained silent in case he was misunderstanding the situation. </p><p>“He's quite new to these things and it was really hard to get through his thick skull and get him to accept and work for the company.” </p><p>His boss noticed the awkwardness in Aaron’s posture and grinned. “You're the best of the best, though. So I know I can count on you.”</p><p>“So am I his mentor—?”</p><p>“Oh!” Jinhwan jumped in his place and looked at something directly behind Aaron. He also turned to look and recognized the man from earlier. <em> Hot guy at four o’clock </em>. “We were just talking about you.”</p><p>Hot guy—<em> Hwang Minhyun— </em>walked towards them with narrowed eyes and bowed politely even though he looked like he was seconds away from losing his temper with the expression he carried on his face. </p><p>“Minhyun, this is Kwak Aaron. Aaron, this is Minhyun.”</p><p>Aaron bowed again, and the other man did the same. There was an initial reaction when they met eyes but Aaron quickly looked away and blinked in the other direction. </p><p>“As I was saying, please help him out. I will be mentioning his inclusion in the company after dessert, but now that you're a team, please do your best.” He looked at Minhyun with more seriousness. “And please behave.”</p><p>Smiling one more time at Aaron, he patted his back, doing the motion to walk inside. </p><p>Aaron turned to look at Minhyun again, and he looked even more uncomfortable than before. If that was physically possible. </p><p>“Don't misunderstand.” Minhyun finally breathed when his father had disappeared entirely. “He hasn't seen me in six years, so he's barely getting used to the idea that I'm not twenty anymore.”</p><p>Aaron wasn't the best when it came to maths, but Minhyun had basically just implied that he was twenty six. “I heard you just graduated? What did you study?”</p><p>Minhyun frowned and closed his mouth, reserved. “I have double majors, but that's not relevant.” </p><p>There was another wave of silence and Minhyun looked at his watch. Minki was right about men in watches. “I suppose I'll see you later,” he seemed to ponder about it but finished with uncertainty, “Kwak Aaron.” </p><p>He waited until Minhyun was back inside to take a deep breath and close his eyes. If Minki’s offer was still up, he wanted to get drunk right about now. There was a heavy weight in his chest when he stared at his reflection in the glass door that led back inside. He shook his head and proceeded to scan himself, bringing the last bits of patience for tonight as he walked back inside. </p><p>Just as Aaron was sitting back down on his chair, the insistent clicking of a spoon to a glass of wine was beaming around the room and everyone turned to look. It was Hwang Jinhwan, and just as easily, everyone was following his posture and standing up to give him complete attention. This was it, he figured. </p><p>He smiled. It looked very practiced. </p><p>Aaron pinpointed that his son had learned it from him, after all. </p><p>“Thank you all for gathering with us this year again,” He had a way of convincing people whenever he had that expression on his face, “I think this year has been incredible for <em> Lovercome </em>, and I must thank all the teams in the company for making such great work, as always.” </p><p>People started clapping heavily, and Aaron found Minhyun standing right across his father with a permanent line on his mouth. It had him staring in wonder. For no reason at all, he wanted to know what had him looking defensive all the time. </p><p>“New Year’s Eve is next week, which means that it's a whole new year for the magazine as well. I put my whole trust on the board of directors and all of the people who work writing, polishing, and making printing possible, and the results are always gratifying,” He raised his glass higher and his gaze went straight ahead to his son, “And with all the happiness and pride in the world, I can finally announce that my son, Hwang Minhyun, will join the company this year and become Lovercome’s new <em> editor </em>.” </p><p>Aaron held his hands to clap until the words fully made sense and settled down. And further down, until they suffocated him and paralyzed him; he was rooted to the ground as if thunder had struck him on the head, and even though he could clearly hear the waves of applause everyone around them gave, Minki looked at him with the same amount of shock, holding his forearm unconsciously.</p><p>“I'm expecting a lot now that I have a successor in the Company, and hopefully this is the best year for the magazine. Cheers, everyone!”</p><p>Minki blinked and sat down as soon as everyone calmed down. He looked at Aaron and attempted to hide that his face probably held more outrage than his own despite everything. </p><p>Dongho stumbled back to their table with a hand fixing his white button-up and another fixing his belt. “What'd I miss?”</p><p>The expression on Aaron’s face forced Minki to explain it himself, loss of words. “Oh, not much.” He shrugged in sarcastic nature. “We all just found out that the new <em> intern </em> is actually our new <em> boss </em>.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“He's not… our boss, he's just our…” Aaron blinked in disbelief, “<em> editor </em>.”</p><p>Minki crossed his arms and eyed him harshly like he was speaking to a dog who’d just peed on the carpet. “That basically means he's our boss, Aaron. He's Jinhwan’s kid. It's gotta be a joke!” </p><p>Dongho stifled a sigh and ran his palm through his mats of black hair. He looked at Aaron and bit his lower lip. “I'm sorry, Aaron.”</p><p>He tried to brush it off with a shake of his head and looked at the table where all the board members sat, and whether it was a coincidence or not, Hwang Minhyun was looking at him already. Aaron looked away like he'd been burned by his gaze and he sighed roughly. </p><p>“Fuck it,” He muttered to his friends. His eyes went back to Minki and he almost laughed despairingly when his friend had true sympathy evidently on his face. “Don't mention it. Let's get drunk and forget it.” </p><p>Minki looked doubtful and seeked support in Dongho. “Are you sure about that?” </p><p>Aaron didn't answer and called the attendant himself, only stopping his requests when Dongho told the young man that they'd be serving themselves whiskey for now. </p><p>The glasses started piling on the table, everyone from the editing team tipsy or equally buzzed, except Aaron—who was one step away from being completely <em> wasted.  </em></p><p>There was a glass clenched around his fingers and as much as Dongho tried to trick him to take it away from him, it resulted in even more lamenting. Aaron was opening up, but luckily the people around them were too busy on their own  drinking to pay attention to him. </p><p>Dongho tried to quiet him down when his voice was starting to rise. “How does it make any sense that <em>I </em>train <em>him</em>? Do you see the issue, Dongho? Am I overreacting?”</p><p>Aaron was frustratedly pointing fingers at his own chest. “I just.” He sighed when Dongho gave him another volume warning. “I just find it completely unfair that I have to train the <em> editor </em> when I could have become the damned editor myself. He's the editor but needs <em> my fucking help? </em>Is Jinhwan messing with me?” </p><p>Minki sighed to his left. “It's his company after all, Aaron. You need to understand that whether you like hierarchy or not, they're still at the top of the pyramid. In multiple ways.” He looked at him sadly and pulled the glass of alcohol from Aaron’s grip when he got distracted with his words. “So if the <em> owner </em> of the company—in this case <em> Jinhwan </em> —wants to make his <em> kid </em> the magazine's editor even if he's never even seen one of our magazines?” He rolled his eyes in frustration, “He <em> can </em> do it.” </p><p>“But that's a business violation—”</p><p>“—And also the norm in South Korea. They're a rich conglomerate, Aaron. What'd you expect?”</p><p>Aaron slumped on his seat. He pushed his hair away from his eyes and got up abruptly. Dongho tried to pull him back down but he pulled a crooked finger up. “I'm going to the toilet, if you will excuse me.”</p><p>His reflection didn't look nearly as bad as he felt inside; or maybe he'd had way too many drinks and he was caught in some sort of drunken demency when he washed his face and dried himself with a paper towel, winking at himself in amusement. </p><p>When the moment was gone, Aaron heaved a sigh, crumpling up the paper towel to toss at the trash bin a few feet away. </p><p>He missed. </p><p>There were a pair of black, very well polished shoes next to it instead and Aaron’s immediate reaction was to apologize half-assedly until he saw Hwang Minhyun standing there himself. He stopped himself from groaning and rolling his eyes and rather looked at him properly with a bit of a drunken glower. </p><p>“Kwak?” He said, a bit reserved. “Are you okay? You look… <em> inebriated </em>.”</p><p>“I'm fine.” He didn't believe the words himself but he steadied himself in front of Minhyun. The visible height difference pinched at his pride but he stood straight. “And you should call me Aaron. It's more comfortable.”</p><p>“Kwak is more respectful.”</p><p>Aaron didn't look away from his gaze even when it looked like a competition of who glared the longest. “I don't mind.” </p><p>Minhyun frowned for a second. “But I do.”</p><p>He was rendered speechless instantly, and his clouded (and alcohol-intoxicated) brain could barely think of a proper response to that. </p><p>“Fine.” He crossed his arms. “So are you gonna stand there and look at me forever or what?”</p><p>Minhyun looked surprised, but he spoke in the same tone as before. “You're blocking the sink.” </p><p>Aaron grew red in shame. It reached his shoes. </p><p>“Anyways.” He leaned down to pick the paper towel he'd accidentally thrown at him earlier and made an escape route when he reached the door. “I'll see you around, <em> Hwang.”  </em></p><p>And he didn't let him answer before he was out and rushing away from the door, a bit more sobered up after causing a scene in there. He breathed through his nose and swept imaginary dust from his pants as he made his way back to their table and announced to his friends that he was getting himself a taxi and leaving early. </p><p>Minki offered to go outside with him but he quickly denied it. He picked his black coat from behind the seat and saw the Christmas bag next to it on the floor. He felt guilty for leaving before the exchange of gifts at twelve, but with red cheeks from the alcohol and emotional embarrassment, he put the bag for Minki to take. </p><p>“Yeah, you guessed it, I was your Secret Santa.”</p><p>His friend rolled his eyes and punched him playfully on the shoulder. “Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?” </p><p>He turned to make sure Dongho wasn't listening and upon confirming it, he smiled in humor. “That's fine, have <em> fun </em> since I can't.”</p><p>Even though he'd made enough mistakes for the night already, Aaron stood at the entrance of the hotel where the company's dinner took place, hugging himself when winter’s breeze hit him directly on the face. Out of his mind. There was not a single taxi roaming around, and it was almost as if he'd forgotten that it was Christmas today. And nearly midnight, at that.</p><p>He watched in shaky silence as a black Hyundai car left the hotel’s parking lot in expertise, and for a whole second he wished he hadn't looked at the driver, because he was about to outwardly groan when he saw Hwang Minhyun behind the steering wheel. <em> That pesky fucker.  </em></p><p>They made afflictive eye contact through the car’s window for a couple seconds, and before Aaron could look away from Minhyun’s stolid gaze, he accelerated down the road and disappeared out of his sight within seconds. </p><p>Aaron stood out there alone, feeling like an absolute, utter fool. Cold and offended. He was moments away from entering the main hall again and telling Minhyun’s father that he was<em> not </em>helping him settle down in the company and that he might as well look for someone else’s help. </p><p>But before he could think further into that idea, a taxi stopped right in front of him and lowered the glass to greet him. Aaron looked around him and looked unsure. This was a company cab, meaning someone must have called for it. </p><p>“Kwak Aaron?” The driver said and he raised both eyebrows in confusion. </p><p>Minki or Dongho must have ordered it for him, that he knew. He could thank them tomorrow. </p><p>As soon as Aaron secured the seatbelt and gave the driver his address, he remembered Minhyun’s face inside his car; he clenched his fists and scoffed in incredulity at the discourtesy when he drove off without hesitation. </p><p>“<em> Kwak is more respectful, </em>my ass.” He repeated in bitterness remembering their conversation from earlier. “Fucking insolent.” </p><p>He sat down further down the car seat and crossed his arms around his chest. If Hwang Minhyun was going to be a contemptuous ass on <em> purpose </em> , even after not getting promoted because of <em> him </em>, Aaron knew that whatever teamwork they were supposed to establish— was definitely beyond futile. </p><p>Aaron was not a pessimist, really, but there was not a single chance. </p><p>
  <em> Not a chance.  </em>
</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Long intros but there we go. </p><p>This is the first time I'm posting a chaptered story in this account, but I've wanted to write a Minron Office AU for over a year, and a one-shot would never give the plot I have in mind justice. </p><p>This will probably have five chapters or so, but buckle up, because I have most of it planned out and written down. Ups and downs. Intro is a filler to further understand what's coming next (and Aaron's character, aha), but I hope it was enojyable so far.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Reasons</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Did it take over a month to update? Yes, yes it did.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sometimes there were certain sacrifices in life that were much more than<em> selfish little tantrums </em> like his mother liked to call them. </p><p>They might have been <em> selfish </em> and <em> little </em> a very long time ago, but they grew significant when he turned sixteen and was enrolled in a private high school that had him locked inside his room for weeks every afternoon after school. His parents were barely home, so his mother noticed the shift in his behavior on the third consecutive weekend in which Minhyun missed breakfast, <em> again </em>. </p><p><em> Things didn't always have a reason </em>, it occurred to him, and that conclusion bothered him. The same way he couldn't pinpoint the reason as to why working in large groups made him very upset or why he felt queasy every time he heard the group of girls behind his seat share their secrets with each other without thinking about it twice. </p><p>His <em> reasoning </em> to the self-isolation when his mother interrogated him the following night was incredibly vague but sounded skilled, as if he knew that the question was coming sooner or later. He lost his appetite that night and frowned when he was alone in his room, getting ready for bed.</p><p>Minhyun blamed it on his lack of logic back then; he was a kid, after all. His lack of knowledge and his manipulable thoughts— because things weren't always logical to him. </p><p>Not even a decade later. </p><p>Because he was getting drunk as hell with Jonghyun laughing next to him one night, and he was on a fourteen hour flight back home with a hangover the next one. Thinking back to it, the plane seat was probably why his neck still hurt. </p><p>The difference between the sixteen year old Minhyun and the twenty-six year old (and current) Minhyun was almost a joke. A very unfunny joke. </p><p>The fatigue was evident in his expression when he fully stared at his reflection that morning. It was an absolute rarity on him; he barely had any responsibilities to take care of even at the age of twenty six, so he swore in conviction that his father’s company was going to <em>kill</em> <em>him—</em>and he hadn't even gone to his first day of work yet. </p><p>He couldn't blame it on the company dinner or in the stuck-ups that attended; he couldn't stand meeting most of his family and other bloated company board members after years, but even so, he couldn't blame it on the little details that bothered him unforgivably when it had been his choice to come back home after all. He blamed it on his lack of reasoning as he reached home at nearly midnight, stressed and poured himself a glass of whiskey that easily multiplied the more he conspired against his solitary lifestyle in Seoul. </p><p>He didn't find joy in drinking alcohol because he wasn't good at handling it in the first place, but despite being very much <em> sober </em> when he decided to get drunk alone on Christmas, (because company dinners sucked and yesterday had barely been the first one in his entire <em> lifetime </em>) he mostly regretted his terrible selection of brand rather than his selection of beverage. </p><p>What an awful night. </p><p>Minhyun walked towards the kitchen, one foot bare and the other covered with an expensive, leather slipper. The missing slipper must have been somewhere around the penthouse, but having no glasses around meant that he was hopeless if he wanted to find it. He laughed and  thanked whatever lucidity he had in his alcoholized system last night when he took his contact lenses off before going to sleep. Or else he'd be in deep shit right now. </p><p>With the weariness that came with his hangover, he drank water from the tap, too far from the drawers to fetch a cup and too lazy to take a water bottle from the refrigerator. </p><p>And for a second too long, he considered calling Jonghyun, but different time zones right now felt like the cherry on top for today’s lonely briefings. </p><p>He occupied himself with his cell phone instead, squinting at the brightness and checking the notifications. Almost immediately, he focused on one from last night that was not… <em> common </em> to him. </p><p>
  <em> The payment for your Taxi (ID KH0509) was successfully done with your credit card at 12:04 a.m December 26 2020.  </em>
</p><p>“Taxi?” He voiced out loud in confusion, frown on his face and fingers seconds away from calling the bank and filing a stolen credit card. </p><p>The realization hit when he remembered (his new co-worker? Subordinate? Colleague?) Kwak Aaron. Alone and trembling on the curb of the street. He rolled his eyes at the memory, because ordering a cab for him had been an act of mercy upon seeing him with drunken red-cheeks on a negative two celsius winter night. </p><p>He put his phone down, eyeing the living room and frowning profusely at the sight. The spilled whiskey on the marble tabletop was putting him on edge, no excuses about how careless he'd been last night. If only his mother or father would have seen him down those drinks as if he were dealing with water. And with no company.</p><p>This place had become his new home exactly two weeks ago and it already was very unlikely of him to be so disorganized. At least his father had been kind enough to let him choose the interior design beforehand (through phone calls and e-mails), but he already missed his shared apartment complex with Kim Jonghyun in Chicago; the liberty to do whatever he wanted to do without his parents objecting let alone <em> finding out </em>. </p><p>They lived under the same roof for four years; Minhyun had stayed at his University’s dorms for the first two years, but after Kim Jonghyun (his childhood friend from Seoul) had convinced his parents to study abroad as well, they'd chosen an apartment quicker than they'd decided on their University majors.</p><p>He wasn't used to waking up in the morning and having blue curtains covering the sun from his eyesight instead of the light flicker that used to wake him up back in Illinois. Sunrise was very late in winter, and the pale grey walls of his room reminded him a little bit of prison. (Not like he'd ever been to prison. Prison wasn't a fitting place for a person like him.)</p><p>But Minhyun had been very unhappy with the twists and turns in his life and he'd started to worry and complain to himself more than usual. He'd reached his peak when his father told him that he'd be in charge of their company upon his arrival, and even though he'd been taught respect and good manners throughout his entire life, he'd thrown the wireless telephone to the wall when his father had started pissing him off. </p><p>Sacrifices were common for him. He'd sacrificed an art degree in Chicago to make his parents happy; he'd been through hell and back when he started double majoring after he was supposed to start his third year of fine arts. Continuing arts (moving to the creative writing aspect, however) and adding a Business Management to the mix, was the least logical thing his parents had urged him to do in his twenty-one years of life. The “you need to take over the family business,” narrative made him sigh in defeat. </p><p>He much preferred to live in America and continue with his life like he'd done for the last six years it took him to successfully graduate, but not even with the amounts of money under his family’s last name would his father allow him to live easy. </p><p>Fair enough; Minhyun <em> was </em> fucked. He'd been fucked the moment his father cut his credit card(s) and restricted him from using his money unless he accepted to take full responsibility for their company back in Korea. His father had taken years to stabilize it in order to raise and give him a perfect, high class life. </p><p>So that was what he was supposed to do starting next week. </p><p>And he felt unsure and <em> upset </em>. </p><p>Minhyun ran a hand through his hair, blinking and giving up on cleaning that morning. He stared at the set of fake flowers on the base his mother had given to him when he arrived days ago, and he bit his lower lip. </p><p>Hwang Minhyun didn't deal well with stress nor responsibilities. Not today. </p><p>And definitely not tomorrow either. </p><p> </p><p>—</p><p> </p><p>A grey towel was loosely tied around his waist; he walked to the closet at the far end of his room and faintly heard Jonghyun’s voice through his phone’s speaker coming from the bathroom. </p><p>“<em> Don't dress up like an art student, please </em> .” His voice was muffled as he probably ate some microwaved dinner. “ <em> It's too soon to unleash.” </em></p><p>Minhyun walked back to the bathroom and put some underwear on, making sure he wasn't in Jonghyun's view. He was still kind of embarrassed with those kinds of things, even after knowing him for so long. </p><p>“And what exactly does that mean?”</p><p>Jonghyun munched on his food and sighed. “<em> It means be fashionable but don't take it too far.” </em></p><p>His job didn't have any uniform rules, and that irked him even more than the tone Jonghyun used on him across the globe. </p><p>Wasn't he about to be the successor of an insanely popular <em> fashion </em> and <em> trend </em> magazine? Minhyun scoffed. </p><p>“I'm wearing a white button-up, black pants and fuck it.”</p><p>Jonghyun's exaggerated tongue click was loud enough to transcend the speaker mode. “<em> You're kidding, right? Why would you dress up in office attire when you could go looking like the rich bastard you are yet still attempting to look a little modest?” </em></p><p>He'd glare at him right now. He seriously would. “If I were a rich bastard, I'd be in our apartment back in Illinois counting the zeros in my bank account instead of working on my dad’s company.” </p><p>His friend laughed sarcastically. “<em> How sad. You probably have to sit on your ass all day long on a leather seat and what? You're gonna call that work?” </em></p><p>“You don't understand what ‘<em> editor’ </em>means, do you?”</p><p>Jonghyun hummed. <em> “Fine. But you said you were getting an assistant or something.” </em></p><p>He was scandalized just thinking about it. “Hell, thanks for reminding me.” He put a ridiculous amount of lotion on his face and looked for his moisturizer in the drawers under the sink. “You know I don't like getting help. Especially from people I barely know.” </p><p><em> “I know. But you're gonna need to fix that teamwork issue of yours. I know you're better off alone and you </em> love <em> outsmarting people and taking control, but try not to come off as an insensitive asshole on your first day of work.”  </em></p><p>He leaned his forehead on the bathroom’s mirror and barely contemplated what his friend had told him without feeling guilty. “Of course I don't want that. I'm not insensitive.” He sighed and added before Jonghyun could jab. “At least not on purpose.”</p><p>Jonghyun spoke with tender sympathy. “<em> I know, trust me.” </em> He put his chopsticks on the table and held the camera closer to his face. “ <em> Come on, show me your face, I wanna tell you something.” </em></p><p>Minhyun picked his phone up from the surface of the bathroom’s sink and put it directly in front of his face. He unconsciously smiled at the sight of his friend and refrained from laughing at him. </p><p><em> “Stop worrying and trying to look for the logic in everything. You can't change your reality right now, so accept it.” </em> Jonghyun tilted his face and smiled. <em> “And I think you should wear that black turtleneck of yours and a long coat.” </em> </p><p>Minhyun rolled his eyes at the last comment but still managed to smile a bit brighter than earlier. </p><p>“<em> No, but seriously. Get dressed. You're gonna be late </em>.” </p><p>And he did as he was told. Minhyun hung up the call shortly after and looked for his car keys and wallet in a rush that wasn't typical of him. </p><p>Turtleneck or not, he was stuck in traffic at seven thirty in the morning. Impatiently, he shifted on the seat of his car and turned the heater off when he felt like his ass was gonna melt if he sat there for one more minute. He checked the time on his watch and checked the digital clock on his car right after, antsy. </p><p>When he was about to skip to the next song, his father’s contact name flashed on the screen of the car, startling him. Minhyun already felt himself growing more impatient even before accepting the call. </p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“<em> Minhyun. Where in the </em> world <em> are you?” </em></p><p>“I'm on my way.” He was infinitely grateful  that he couldn't see his face right now. “Why? I'm not late yet.” </p><p><em> “I told you to come in early to show you around the company. </em> ” His voice sounded gruff and frustrated, but Minhyun couldn't understand why. <em> “I need to go to an impromptu meeting in Gangnam right now, so Nayoung will wait for you on the second floor instead.” </em></p><p>“Okay.” Minhyun said. He sighed at the hellish highway ahead. “Is that all? I'm driving right now.” He hadn't even moved an inch from his spot, though.</p><p><em> “I– yeah </em> ,” His father seemed offended. “ <em> Drive safe.”  </em></p><p>Minhyun was a firm believer in first impressions. And even though he'd gotten a very crucial position at… his <em> own </em>company, he could understand that his first impression must not have been the best one when he insistently pushed through a door that very clearly said pull.</p><p>That, and the fact that he was almost late. </p><p>Despite feeling like a complete dumbass, everyone on the first floor bowed to greet him. He knew that they recognized him from the Christmas dinner, and that made him uncomfortable because having attention on him made him grow funnily awkward. Back in University he was just another face. But here—right here and now—he was Hwang Minhyun, the spoiled kid of <em> everyone’s </em> boss: Hwang Jinhwan. And that almost made it look like he was a fucking threat if the way everyone greeted him was to go by. </p><p>At least he knew Nayoung. She was one of his cousins after all, and she'd gotten a job here the same way as him. </p><p>She eyed him amusedly when he walked to her with a conflicting expression. “Well, look at you. You look really excited.” </p><p>Minhyun narrowed his eyes and smiled at her in a very apathetic way. “Good morning to you too. Are you going to show me my office or why did I come find you?”</p><p>Nayoung ignored Minhyun’s tone and shook her head. “Aaron hasn't arrived yet, so I don't have the keys to the fifth floor, but I can show you around in the meantime.”</p><p>But Minhyun stopped her. “<em> Kwak </em>? Why would Kwak Aaron have the keys?” </p><p>Nayoung looked more surprised than irritated. She gave him her back and shrugged. “He was the editor before you came. That's why he's supposed to help you.”</p><p>“Oh.” He didn’t know how to feel about that. “I didn't know.”</p><p>“Yeah. So until he decides to show up, I'll introduce you to the team.”</p><p>It was already distressing for him to meet new people and introduce himself so early in the morning. Despite his hard work to change a personality trait of his that was engraved like a tattoo on his skin, he accepted that meeting and befriending people was quite challenging. He always carried that expression on his face that looked unfriendly, and he was mostly okay with it because he wasn’t interested in socializing much. </p><p>If he hurt someone's feelings, he was usually unaware of it. But that didn't mean that he did the hurting on purpose. If anything, he'd given up a long time ago. </p><p>Nayoung had started chatting with a fellow co-worker from the Social Media Team whose name Minhyun had already forgotten half-way through the second floor. He looked at the certifications and golden picture frames on the walls instead, reading awards and other certificates that the company had received over the years. </p><p>He couldn't read one of them properly and leaned in to take it in his hands to detach the frame from the wall. With incredible ease, he took it out and started to read when a voice behind him made him jump in silent surprise.</p><p>“That’s company property!” The voice said, waving his arms madly in distress. The man ran a hand over his hair when he met Minhyun’s shocked gaze. </p><p>“It’s not illegal to touch if the president of the company gives you permission.”</p><p>The man widened his eyes and laughed upon recognizing him. “Hwang Minhyun? Forgive me.” He stretched his hand out rather than bowing like all the other employees had done. “Choi Minki. Fashion editor.”</p><p>Minhyun was wary when he shook his hand but he felt less uncomfortable than before when Choi Minki had classified him as a delinquent when he held the certification of a worldwide fashion magazine on his bare hands. </p><p>“Seizing the opportunity, now that you’re here I wanna mention that we’re gonna work closely. There's a lot of meetings we have to arrange now that you're the print editor. I'm pretty sure Aaron’s gonna explain all of that to you, but as a heads up, I constantly need your signature and authorization to carry on with photoshoots and brand deals and other fashion products and you know...” </p><p>Minki looked at him and his expression must have been one of astonished surprise by how quickly he started apologizing. “Am I suddenly overwhelming you—?”</p><p>“No, that's—uh, that's fine.” Minhyun blinked. “I'm gonna adapt soon enough.” </p><p>“Great.” Minki nodded and beamed before walking the other way. “Pleasure to work with you.”</p><p><em> Photoshoots and brand deals and other fashion products. </em>If he had any doubts before, Minhyun was confident about fucking up an entire company now for sure. </p><p>“Min—I mean, Hwang Minhyun?” </p><p>Appalled enough from earlier, Minhyun turned and it was Kwak Aaron right behind him. He looked like he had rushed to arrive, and he was probably right, given the time it was by now. </p><p>“Good morning.” Minhyun said, and like it wasn't obvious, he pointed out. “You're late.”</p><p>“My car’s engine was dead this morning.” Aaron suddenly frowned, as if he were unsure of why he was giving Minhyun an explanation. “Anyways, I'm really sorry for that.”</p><p>He shifted, uncomfortable. “Nayoung was showing me around—” And he stopped mid-sentence upon realizing that she'd disappeared and ditched him if her absence was of any clue. “—but I guess her tour’s over.” </p><p>Aaron looked at him in silence for a moment before speaking again. “I'll take you to—uh, to your office.”</p><p>Minhyun didn't comment further and followed him to the elevator in complete silence. He watched Aaron push a key on the elevator’s front wall and press the fifth floor button, waiting impatiently for him to speak again. As he wouldn't, he assumed that Kwak Aaron only had a big mouth when he was drunk. </p><p>They walked in even more silence after the elevator stopped on their floor. Minhyun looked around and saw plenty of offices with name plates on the walls, but he immediately focused on the glazed glass door at the further back of the entire floor that he supposed was his new office. The fifth floor looked way wider and better decorated than the second floor. </p><p>It wasn't ideal, but what finally broke the silence was when Aaron started coughing as he attempted to open the glass door with the dangling keys in between his fingers. He sounded unwell and Minhyun really didn't want to ask but did it after contemplation. “Are you sick?”</p><p>Aaron nodded his head and looked at him. “I got sick after the Christmas dinner.” He narrowed his eyes at the thought of something and Minhyun only stared back at him. “It was cold that night after all.”</p><p>Minhyun wasn't stupid, and the look on Aaron’s face was way too bitter. </p><p>“It was.” He replied steadily. “And you only wore a thin coat. You should've been a bit more careful.”</p><p>“Really?” Aaron fully faced him now. Looking offended even. “Well, you should've been a bit more considerate, then.”</p><p>He was appalled at the choice of words. His gaze was permanent on Aaron’s face, looking for any trace of expression that showed that he was joking. They weren't close, so Minhyun found it impossible that he was joking with him. So when he found absolutely no trace of friendliness, he scoffed in disbelief. </p><p>“Sorry? Is that your very impolite way of saying <em> thank you?” </em></p><p>“<em> Thank you?” </em>It was Aaron’s turn to scoff. “For what?” </p><p>Minhyun stared in open unbelievingness. “I <em> ordered </em> you a cab.”</p><p>The keys dropped to the ground in the otherwise silent room. Aaron paused and lightly turned away to look at the floor where the keys laid. “That… was you?”</p><p>Minhyun frowned. “I thought it'd been obvious.”</p><p>“Why would it be obvious? You drove off on me. No, it wasn't <em> obvious </em>, Captain Obvious.”</p><p>He crossed his arms on his chest, perfect posture and stoic expression. “Now you know, then.”</p><p>“I'll pay you back.” Aaron said, picking up the keys from the floor and ignoring the burning gaze of Minhyun on his neck. “And I'm sorry for calling you inconsiderate.”</p><p>Minhyun only looked away. “You don’t need to pay back.” He sounded as Aaron unlocked the door.</p><p>The office was as big as the bedroom in his penthouse. But the expensive wood and the black curtains didn’t catch his attention. What caught his attention was that the walls and the shelves were all decorated and before he could comment, Aaron seemed to fidget nervously at the realization. Minhyun shut his mouth and noticed carefully that the writing desk at the back of the room had two picture frames on top.</p><p>“I uh, I don't know if you were aware, but this used to be my office.” He looked at the books on the shelves and bit his cheek. “I didn't have time to pack my things yet.” Aaron said and Minhyun looked at him properly. For the first time since they’d met. </p><p>He quickly looked away and lingered his eyes on the picture frames again. Both pictures had two dogs; a Shiba and another nearly identical smaller one. He decided not to comment on it because what even was small talk for Hwang Minhyun? He couldn’t help but feel the same guilt he’d felt before when Nayoung mentioned that Aaron was the previous editor. He’d taken someone’s job unintentionally and he didn’t like that feeling at all. </p><p>“First things first,” Aaron clasped his hands together, “I should start with an overview of the things you’re supposed to do, even though you're probably informed already.”</p><p>Minhyun wasn’t sure of how much Kwak Aaron knew about him. He didn’t know if his father had conspired behind his back and told him that his son was stubborn and thick-skulled. “You have the ultimate responsibility for everything that gets published. You approve the content and appearance of the featured articles.” </p><p>Aaron walked to the desk and motioned for Minhyun to follow him. There was an agenda on the left corner of the table filled with names and numbers. He showed it to him and hesitated momentarily. <b>“</b>We have a lot of writers. I’m one of them, actually, so you're supposed to meet with us and the artists to discuss features and artworks.”</p><p>He looked at him carefully before continuing. “You're in charge of giving deadlines and networking actively at industry events. Most of these are arranged by Minki, our fashion editor, but you should at least try to attend <em> some </em> of the photoshoots to look like you’re involved.” He looked serious, and Minhyun nearly found himself smiling in humor. </p><p>“The last thing is to proofread, rewrite and, of course, <em> edit </em> the articles to meet the publication standards before sending it to the printing team.” He finally looked up and met Minhyun’s eyes with a shrug. “You don’t have to worry too much right now, though. I know that it sounds gruesome, but I’m here to help you, right?”</p><p>Minhyun felt suddenly startled and he opened his mouth to speak. “That’s very… considerate of you.” He couldn't help but notice that Kwak Aaron’s tie was not tied correctly as he thought about something else to say and he was momentarily distracted by the realization. “But I think I’ll call you when I need your help.”</p><p>Aaron raised an eyebrow. “You'll call me?” He nodded slowly as if he just finished understanding what was going on. “I assume you will take this job very seriously, right? Because I don't know what it means to you, but I hope you understand that it meant <em> everything </em>to me.”</p><p>Minhyun didn't have a proper response to that. He was quite thrown off but he tried to understand it from his viewpoint as well and push the selfishness away. “I understand that completely. But I just happen to work better individually.” </p><p>“There's no such thing as individualism here.” Aaron looked at Minhyun for a moment longer and continued. “The agenda I showed you, remember? We have teams here. Social Media, Printing, Writing, Marketing… <em> Editing team </em> . If we don't work together we don't reach our goal, it's <em> that </em>simple.” </p><p>Minhyun took a look at the office and settled on the picture frames of Kwak Aaron’s dogs. “I didn't mean to offend you. But getting me an assistant was not <em> my </em>choice but my father’s.” </p><p>Aaron stared at him, speechless. “<em>Assistant</em>?” He laughed with no humor. “I am <em>not</em> your assistant. I'm here to <em>help you</em> because you need to settle down and understand <em>your</em> <em>job </em>here before making decisions for the magazine, but you're not cooperating with me.” </p><p>“I <em>understand</em> my job. What I don't understand is the issue you're making, Kwak.”</p><p>“The issue is that we already had a very effective routine and way of handling things before <em>you</em> showed up.”</p><p>“Me?” His eyebrows shot up. “Do you think I want to be here? That I chose to take away your job and that I feel <em> good </em> about it?” It looked like it took a lot of effort for him to admit. He didn't like dealing with his emotions openly like that. “I don't want to be here just as much as you don't want me here.”</p><p>Aaron looked at him and all the anger and frustration left his entire body when he deflated and sighed softly. “Im not saying– It's not like that! I–I'm really sorry for implying all of that.” He looked really upset and Minhyun felt the regret when he looked back at him. “It's not only the fact that you took this job away from me. I've worked here for <em> years </em>, and I was taken aback when I realized that it didn't mean anything if I worked hard or not. Honestly, I don't even know why I'm saying all of these things to you.”</p><p>Minhyun breathed out, stressed. “I didn't know I was taking away someone else’s job either.”</p><p>He sighed and looked around. “I should probably bring a box to move all my things out. Take a look at the documents in the computer if you wanna… get the gist, yeah.”</p><p>Aaron was out of his new office after that, disappearing in the elevator and leaving Minhyun with a distasteful flavor in his mouth. Like bile rising up in his chest. </p><p>
  <em> “Try not to come off as an insensitive asshole on your first day of work.”  </em>
</p><p>Minhyun shook his head bitterly as he sat down and analyzed the entire discussion he'd had with Aaron minutes ago. Jonghyun would <em> definitely </em> be proud. </p><p>Initially, he didn't understand why Kwak Aaron looked like he disliked him the moment they saw each other again today. He didn't understand why he looked like he wanted him to disappear out of his sight forever, but now, he understood his <em>reasons, </em>after all.</p><p>
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  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This very tasty <a href="https://twitter.com/dabbingminhyun/status/1245136327122788353?s=21">Minron</a> though!</p><p>my <a href="">Twitter</a></p><p>Comments much appreciated. It's day eighteen of quarantine, and I have fourteen more days to go, so I shall attempt to post chapter three by then!</p><p>Stay safe, please!</p>
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